Charge your phone overnight? Heres why Montreal fire officials say to stop [Video]

Many Canadians likely plug in their phone before going to bed to charge it during a period of the day when they don’t need it, but Montreal fire officials are urging people not to do so due to a potential fire risk.

The warning from the Montreal fire department comes after it battled a major fire involving about 15,000 kg of lithium batteries inside a shipping container on Monday at the Port of Montreal.

“Due to the amount of energy that these batteries store, it took us quite a while to extinguish the fire,” Matthew Griffith, the fire department’s section chief, said this week.

Lithium batteries can be found in any number of electronic devices, from toys and power tools to cellphones, and while generally considered safe to use, the federal government warns they still have the same safety risks as other kinds of batteries including overheating, fires and explosions, …